Stephanie Gilmore to return from hiatus and surf on next year’s world tour at age 38
Stephanie Gilmore may have achieved more than any other woman in surfing, and has spent recent years on sponsor-funded wave odysseys, playing guitar at gigs to adoring crowds, developing apparel collabs and launching her own tequila, but she will turn back the clock in 2026.The 37-year-old, who turns 38 in January, will return to full-time competition on the elite tour after accepting a season-long wildcard to surf the World Surf League’s Championship Tour.“The last few years, I’ve enjoyed time off to do some exploration and other things, but I’m looking forward to heading back to the CT in 2026, and seeing how I compete against the young talent on the tour,” she said.Gilmore made an appearance on tour in May, when she was given a wildcard at the Gold Coast Pro.She progressed to the quarter-finals by overcoming defending world champion Caitlin Simmers, but was ultimately defeated by another teenager in Canadian Erin Brooks.
“I’m mostly excited just to see how I go in these challenges again,” Gilmore said,“When you step away from competing full-time, you can really switch off, and it can be hard to get back into that headspace, but I’m excited to feel that energy and that challenge again,”Gilmore has won eight world titles, more than any other surfer, and her most recent success came in 2022,That year her improbable finals victory took her past Layne Beachley’s record of seven global crowns,But she withdrew from the tour in 2024 saying she wanted to pursue other passions, which have included playing guitar with rock group Spiderbait, and travelling the world for surf documentaries.
Gilmore remains a woman in demand, and signed a new eight-year, multi-million dollar endorsement deal with Rip Curl even after she has stopped competing.“I’ve had incredible opportunities over the last few years, and it’s actually been busier than I could have imagined,” Gilmore said.She will be far from favourite next year in the season that begins at Bells Beach in Victoria in April.In her absence a new generation of surfers has emerged, including 22-year-old defending world champion Molly Picklum from the NSW Central Coast.“It will be nice to get back on tour and have a schedule mapped out for the year.
It’s been fun, but I’m looking forward to getting back into a bit more of a routine, so we’ll see where that leads me.”
Amazon vs Perplexity: the AI agent war has arrived
Hello, and welcome to TechScape. I’m your host, Blake Montgomery.A tech titan and a startup are fighting over who controls the next phase of artificial intelligence.Amazon has sued Perplexity AI, a prominent artificial intelligence startup, over a shopping feature in that company’s browser that allows it to automate placing orders for users. Amazon accused Perplexity AI of covertly accessing customer accounts and disguising AI activity as human browsing
Crypto market sheds more than $1tn in six weeks amid fears of tech bubble
More than $1tn (£760bn) has been wiped off the value of the cryptocurrency market in the past six weeks amid fears of a tech bubble and fading expectations for a US rate cut next month.Tracking more than 18,500 coins, the value of the crypto market has fallen by a quarter since a high in early October, according to the data company CoinGecko.Bitcoin has fallen by 27% over the same period to $91,212, its lowest level since April.Investors around the world are on edge as fears mount over an artificial intelligence bubble in the stock market, with even the boss of Google’s parent company warning that “no company” will be immune if the bubble bursts.The UK’s blue-chip FTSE 100 index fell 1
‘Fear really drives him’: is Alex Karp of Palantir the world’s scariest CEO?
His company is potentially creating the ultimate state surveillance tool, and Karp has recently been on a striking political and philosophical journey. His biographer reveals what makes him tickIn a recent interview, Alex Karp said that his company Palantir was “the most important software company in America and therefore in the world”. He may well be right. To some, Palantir is also the scariest company in the world, what with its involvement in the Trump administration’s authoritarian agenda. The potential end point of Palantir’s tech is an all-powerful government system amalgamating citizens’ tax records, biometric data and other personal information – the ultimate state surveillance tool
Don’t blindly trust everything AI tools say, warns Alphabet boss
The head of Google’s parent company has said people should not “blindly trust” everything artificial intelligence tools tell them.In an interview with the BBC, Sundar Pichai, the chief executive of Alphabet, said AI models were “prone to errors” and urged people to use them alongside other tools.In the same interview, Pichai warned that no company would be immune if the AI bubble burst.Since May, Google has introduced an “AI Mode” into its search using its Gemini chatbot, which aims to give users the experience of talking to an expert.Google’s consumer AI model, Gemini 3
UK consumers warned over AI chatbots giving inaccurate financial advice
Artificial intelligence chatbots are giving inaccurate money tips, offering British consumers misleading tax advice and suggesting they buy unnecessary travel insurance, research has revealed.Tests on the most popular chatbots found Microsoft’s Copilot and ChatGPT advised breaking HMRC investment limits on Isas; ChatGPT wrongly said it was mandatory to have travel insurance to visit most EU countries; and Meta’s AI gave incorrect information about how to claim compensation for delayed flights.Google’s Gemini advised withholding money from a builder if a job went wrong, a move that the consumer organisation Which? said risked exposing the consumer to a claim of breach of contract.Which? said its research, conducted by putting 40 questions to the rival AI tools, “uncovered far too many inaccuracies and misleading statements for comfort, especially when leaning on AI for important issues like financial or legal queries”.Meta’s AI received the worst score, followed by ChatGPT; Copilot and Gemini scored slightly higher
Jeff Bezos reportedly launches new AI startup with himself as CEO
After stepping down as Amazon’s CEO four years ago, Jeff Bezos, the billionaire founder and former chief executive of the online shopping company, is going to be a CEO again. This time, Bezos has appointed himself co-CEO of an AI startup called Project Prometheus, the New York Times reported, citing anonymous sources.The startup, which will focus on developing AI for engineering and manufacturing in various fields, has already received $6.2bn in funding – more than many companies are able to raise in their lifetimes. Leading the company alongside Bezos is his co-founder and co-CEO Vik Bajaj, a celebrity tech executive in his own right
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